


Help

by delamere



Category: Person of Interest (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-19
Updated: 2014-11-19
Packaged: 2018-02-26 05:32:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2639936
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/delamere/pseuds/delamere
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Whatever had gone wrong during this mission had jeopardised her entire position. She wasn’t sure what had done it but the second the Machine had warned her, she knew she had to flee. It wasn’t with ease she had managed, as evident by the blood trail that followed her, but somehow she had found herself back in their new safe house and was thankful for the heavy rain saving her from the worry of a trail that would have easily led Samaritan to her."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Help

**Author's Note:**

> AKA  
> A one-shot in which Shaw's doctoring skills come in handy. 
> 
> I know this is quite long but hopefully you enjoy.

Despite herself, Root was shaking. She tried to reason with herself that she had received far worse wounds than this, and she truly had, but for whatever reason, the bullet wounds that had embedded themselves in her left bicep and shoulder were causing her more grief than usual. The unsteadiness of her hands were making it increasingly harder for her to treat the pain. She knew she needed to extract the bullets and usually she would easily have done it, even revelled in being able to hold the thing that could have easily killed her. This time, her relatively uninjured arm was finding itself incapable of doing little more than apply pressure to her bicep wound. 

Whatever had gone wrong during this mission had jeopardised her entire position. She wasn’t sure what had done it but the second the Machine had warned her, she knew she had to flee. It wasn’t with ease she had managed, as evident by the blood trail that followed her, but somehow she had found herself back in their new safe house and was thankful for the heavy rain saving her from the worry of a trail that would have easily led Samaritan to her.

“Fuck,” She seethed, the empty subway echoing her curse. Within her implant she heard the Machine relaying possible reasons for her unusually jittery behaviour. Sleep deprivation, dehydration, extensive physical activity, cold exposure… Root closed her eyes, feeling a wave of nausea overwhelm her. In her ear the Machine continued to list off conditions, even ones that would be possible side effects to Control’s amphetamine injections. Despite how long ago that seemed, occasionally Root still felt some effects of it, but never to this extent. She was unsure if it was due to her dazed mind or extreme anxiety that caused Root to reach behind her ear, and with a frantic hand, take off the component of her cochlear implant that allowed her to hear. 

The silence within the subway was more prominent than ever. The only sound that was able to resonate within her left ear was the sound of her unsteady breathing. Finally, she attempted once more to tend to her wounds. With a slightly easier hand, she began removing the sleeve of her jacket that covered her left arm. The stickiness of the blood only served to make it harder to peel it away, producing another nausea induced pause. Slowly she was able to remove the sleeve, revealing a deeper bicep wound than she had expected. She inspected her shoulder, concluding it was far less worrisome in comparison which was somewhat a relief. Picking up a metal implement she intended to use to remove the bullet, she grasped the edge of the desk she was sat at with her injured arm, hoping it would steady herself. It failed, and she dropped the tool, the clattering of it hitting the floor causing the silence to once again be penetrated, although she could barely hear it. Angry with herself, she slammed her fisted hand agains the table before resting her face in her palm. She could feel the mixture of sweat and blood that had gathered on her face. Suddenly she longed for a shower. Even if the bullet was still lodged in her arm, she would welcome that more, bleeding out and dying so long as she was clean. 

With her left arm limp on the table and her right arm propped up on its elbow, acting as a rest for her head, she closed her eyes. She was unsure of what her intentions had been in that moment, whether she was resting briefly in order to attempt once again soon or if she had truly shut her eyes for what could have been the last time. Either way, her eyes shot open at a sound that barely reached her left ear.

“Answer me, Root!”

She opened her mouth to reply but the chance to speak disappeared as the shorter woman quickly appeared beside her. Root was initially confused, her mind taking a few extra seconds to catch up with the sight before her. Clad in a thick parka that was now soaked, Shaw had entered the lair with an equally soaked Bear who was now attempting to dry himself in a far corner. Finally she was able to focus on Shaw who had knelt in front of Root, inspecting the wound herself. 

“Answer me,” She said once again, this time looking Root directly in the eye.

She was sure she saw a hint of worry in there but chose not to comment. “What did you ask?”

Shaw narrowed her eyes, “What the hell happened?”

Root shook her head, “It doesn’t matter. Just a quick number that went a little wrong.” She wasn’t necessarily lying, but she knew Shaw could tell that ‘a little wrong’ was an extreme understatement. She watched Shaw’s anger bubble as the shorter woman began extracting the bullet. She did this silently until a particularly anger induced jab into Root’s arm caused her to draw a harsh breath in.

“Sorry,” She mumbled, relaxing her tensed muscles in order to do the job more painlessly. 

All the while, Root kept her eyes on Shaw, even as she went to a drawer to retrieve a medical kit, watching her face as she treated her with ease. It made Root think of Shaw as a doctor. Although she couldn’t quite envision it, the display of efficiency and knowledge in Shaw’s careful work on her left arm made it evident that Shaw had indeed once been a doctor, and a good one at that. Root smiled before the movement of Bear in the corner of her eye caused her to redirect her attention.

“Didn’t you read the weather forecast?”

“What?” Shaw asked, never taking her eyes off Root’s arm as she began to stitch up the wound.

Her hand still shook as she pointed at Bear. At first Shaw’s eyebrows knitted together as she watched Root’s hand shaking but it was quickly withdrawn. She followed to where it had been pointing and watched as Bear finally settled himself into his bed.

“He needed a walk.”

Root nodded and redirected her attention to her arm. Shaw completed the stitch and cut the thread. Picking up a bottle of alcohol, Shaw didn’t need to warn Root that this part would hurt. She winced as her flesh was dabbed with what felt like acid but equally welcomed the pain, knowing it was doing far more good than the metal bullet that now rested on the table had been doing.

Shaw went about the shoulder wound which she found was a much cleaner shot. All through this, they remained silent. Root kept her eyes on Shaw - whether it was out of comfort or out of fascination she wasn’t sure. Finally, Shaw placed the tools she had been using on the table, completing the cleaning of the newly stitched up abrasions, and stood up to take in the sight before her more clearly. 

“You look like shit,” She stated. And she really did. The combination of exhaustion and pain had caused Root to look paler than she had ever seen her and the mixture of blood and sweat only served to make her look even closer to death.

Root gave a small laugh but found no words to respond with, no quick quips. It made Shaw frown.

“Why didn’t She have your back?” She questioned, still staring down at the seated brunette. It earned her a shrug and a sigh which only served to make her angrier. “What if I hadn't been here tonight, Root? What if you had been caught?” She angrily snapped. “Look at me Root!” Root looked up and Shaw realised how tired the woman must be but it didn’t deter her from her questioning. “What’s She got to say for herself?”

“I don’t know,” She finally admitted, looking to the table. Shaw warily followed her gaze and saw the implant resting beside a mess of bloodied clothes.

“Why?”

She sighed and shook her head, repeating once again, “I don’t know.”

Her anger diminished slightly as she watched Root stare at the ground. “Where are you staying tonight?”

Root went to open her mouth to reply but Shaw cut her off.

“Don’t say ‘I don’t know' again.”

It caused Root to smile sadly, “But I really don’t.”

Shaw groaned and picked her coat off of the floor again, whistling for Bear to come back over to her. She handed the coat over to Root before picking up Bear’s lead that had remained attached to him since they had entered the subway. “My place.”

“Shaw - ”

“Don’t make me regret this,” She warned. “Put the coat on.”

She stood up and complied, putting her right arm through the right sleeve before pausing to glance down at her lip left arm. Shaw rolled her eyes, dropping Bear’s lead before picking Root’s bloodied and ripped jacket from the floor. She motioned for Root to lift her arm to her chest before reaching around to tie the arms of the jacket to form a sling. Root was watching as Shaw did this, watching as her face became inches from her own, smirking as she noticed Shaw notice this. Shaw’s gaze met Root’s momentarily before she withdrew. She lifted the left side of the coat and brought it over the now supported arm, covering it to avoid it getting wet. Finally, she reached to the table and picked up the implant, placing it in the pocket.

“Thank you.”

Shaw huffed and picked up the lead once again, leading the way up the steps.

————————

While Shaw’s place truly hadn’t been that far, the shakiness of Root’s state was once again prominent as rain began to fall fast. It had meant a quick and discreet robbery of a car which neither Shaw or Root had any particular problem with. It now meant the two were relatively dry when they entered the apartment, or at least they had been before Bear once again had shook himself clean, spraying the two with water.

A comfortable silence fell as Shaw helped Root out of the coat, placing it on the hanger beside the door. She went about removing her shoes before telling Root to do so as she made her way to the kitchen.

“Drink?”

Root was slowly removing her shoes when Shaw’s head emerged from around the corner. She looked up questioningly. 

“Drink?” She repeated.

She nodded in response before rising and placing her shoes beside Shaw’s. She was exhausted. Never one to worry about politeness, she made her way into the familiar living room and sat down on the couch, breathing in and out as she felt her heavy eyelids shut.

“Hey, sit up,” Shaw commanded. She gently helped Root sit up from her lying position. 

Root looked confused, she hadn’t even realised she’d laid down. “Hmm?” She hummed groggily.

“Drink some water.”

She took the drink and sipped at it, only now realising how much she had needed it. She relished in the relief it caused her itchy throat. “Thank you, Sameen.”

Shaw rolled her eyes before standing up and extending her hand to the still seated woman. It was either because she was extremely tired or in extreme pain, but Root didn’t question the offering and merely took her hand as she was led to Shaw’s bathroom. There, Shaw helped her out of the bloodied clothing she had been wearing.

“You’ll need a shower before you’re getting in my bed.”

Root smiled warily, “Would have thought you’d prefer me dirty.”

Despite herself, Shaw was relieved to have some signs of life from the old Root, and managed a small smirk in response. She turned the shower on before stripping herself. Root’s eyes wandered her body, taking in her form. It was a body she had felt beneath her finger tips more often than the other woman would care to admit, but there was something intimate about looking at her nude body in the confinement of her bathroom. Most of their encounters were quick and rough with only a brief amount of time to admire one another. For the first time, Root was able to stare in awe at the body in front of her, the soft and smooth skin that she had felt but had never quite seen. Shaw would be lying if she said she hadn’t allowed herself to do this too, although more discretely. Her admiration was however cut short as her eyes fell upon the several wounds Root had accumulated that night, not to mention the scars that scattered her body from previous events. Sighing, she looked back to Root’s face.

“In.”

Root’s eyes snapped back up to Shaw’s. She complied, albeit slowly and unsteadily. 

“And keep your arm out of the water.”

Using her right arm as support against the wall, the warm water was welcomed and she thought back to only an hour before when she had craved the sensation. She kept her eyes closed, mainly to allow herself to relax but also partially to avoid seeing the blood and dirt amount at her feet. Behind her, she felt Shaw join her in the shower. Turning to face the shorter woman, she flickered her eyes open against the water.

“Use me as support.”

Once again, Root did as she was told and, with her right hand, gripped Shaw’s shoulder. Slowly and steadily, Shaw was able to clean Root’s body, careful to avoid irritating the stitches. Every once in a while, her gaze would lead her to Root’s face. Thankfully, Root kept her eyes closed, savouring the feeling of the warm water and Shaw’s warm hands, allowing Shaw to steal these glances to check that she was okay. After some time, Root found her earlier tiredness once again overwhelming her. With a heavy head, she rested it upon Shaw’s right shoulder, her right hand still gripping the other. Shaw swallowed hard. She swear she could feel Root’s lips ever so slightly kiss her skin. 

With the water finally running clear, Shaw switched the shower off, earning a small noise of annoyance from Root. Instinctively she caressed her hair briefly, as if apologising, before withdrawing her hand, realising what she had done. If Root had felt the soft touch against her head, she had not mentioned it and for that Shaw was grateful.  
“Come on,” She whispered before realising she had spoken into Root’s now deaf ear. She used her hand to lightly push Root from her resting stance, looking into her tired eyes. “Come on,” She repeated.

She stepped out first, offering her hand to Root. Once they were both out, she wrapped a towel around Root and then herself. Drying down was easy enough for Root using only her right hand, but she did however need assistance in pulling over one of Shaw’s oversized t-shirts. 

“Careful,” Shaw chastised as Root attempted to do so on her own. She quickly pulled over her own t-shirt before walking over to where Root sat at the edge of the bed. Carefully raising the wounded arm, she was able to ease it through the sleeve. “I’m going to put some dressing on them, okay?” Blood had begun to seep slightly through the stitches. Root nodded and sighed deeply. She felt utterly useless. She raised her hand and ran it through her wet hair, noticing that it still shook. Shaw no doubt noticed as well as she placed the bandages on.

“Root?” 

Her gaze met Shaw’s concerned face. 

“Are you okay?”

It was the first time she had asked. Shaw had other ways of displaying concern - sometimes it was with a look, sometimes with an action, but rarely was it vocal - and that suited her and others around her fine. But for some reason, Shaw felt guilty this time, guilty that she hadn’t asked sooner. But she was asking now and it made Root smile.

“I will be,” She replied, “I’ve had worse.”

Shaw nodded, accepting this answer. At least for now. She stood and went to her bathroom, reemerging with a couple of capsules. “For the pain,” She said, handing them over with a glass of water that was on her beside table.

Gratefully, Root took them. Although the stitching and shower had helped a great deal in subsiding the pain, there was still the intense throbbing and aching that accompanied being shot at. Having taken the pills, Root turned to Shaw with a small, tired smirk. “Bed?”

Shaw rolled her eyes but nodded nonetheless. “Yes, you can get in bed now.”

She pulled the covers from the bed and slid in. The comfort and warmth that the duvet provided was a sensation surpassing even the shower. Her eyes instantly closed as she allowed her body to melt into the mattress. 

“Move over.”

Her eyes flickered open as Shaw motioned for her to move to the other side.

“I sleep on this side though,” Root mumbled. 

Shaw narrowed her eyes at this. Root had indeed found a ‘side’ in Shaw’s bed, much to her annoyance. “I don’t want to hurt your arm anymore than it already is. You’ll need to sleep on the right this time.”

Shuffling across, Root nestled once again into the bed, allowing Shaw to climb in too. Root knew it would be a matter of seconds before she fell asleep. She turned her head on the pillow, looking at Shaw who had been facing upright with her eyes closed but, feeling the Root’s eyes on her, turned too. Root leant forward and, without hesitation, placed a soft kiss against her lips. She responded to this and turned her body full, cupping Root’s face between her hands. It was unlike any kiss they had shared before. It didn’t feel hectic or forceful and it didn’t feel painful. It did, however, feel desperate, as if Shaw was clinging to Root for dear life but Root didn’t mind that.

With her hands still gently holding Root’s face, Shaw pulled away. She briefly held Root’s gaze before returning to her position on her back and closing her eyes. “You need rest.”

Root was still gazing at Shaw as she finally let her eyelids shut. Despite everything that had happened that day, she found it hard to regret it. She knew it was ridiculous, but being shot at seemed a small price to pay to see those glimpses of Shaw that meant she cared. 

——————

When Root finally awoke, she found the bed unsurprisingly empty and the space behind her cold, suggesting it had been that way for some time. She winced at the pain that erupted through her body, particularly her left arm. Glancing around the room she noticed a note beside the bed and reached with her right arm to retrieve it.

Gone to return Bear and clean up after your mess before Finch has a heart attack. Stay in bed. I’ll be back.

Beside the note rested painkillers and her implant. She sighed and toyed with the idea of ignoring the implant, if only for the day, but knew there was no time for days off in a war. With more steadiness than she could muster yesterday, she connected the implant once again and fully expected the Machine to transmit the details of a new identity that would no doubt send her half way across the world but all that came was one word.

Rest.

“But Samaritan?”

She waited for a reply but it never came. She reached around once again and removed it, placing it back on the table before swallowing the pills. It was occasions like this that reminded her that the Machine cared for her just as she cared for it. Grateful, she whispered a thank you as she lay back into the bed. In the distance, she heard the door to the apartment open and close. After a few moments of movement, Shaw was once again stood in her bedroom, leaning against the doorframe. 

“Hey.”

Root smiled from the bed. “Hey.”

Shaw quickly glanced at the implant on the table, noticing it had moved. “So where’s the Machine got you going today?”

She shook her head, “Nowhere today.”

Shaw raised an eyebrows, “Wow, so this is what it takes for her to give you a day off? Maybe I’ll shoot you myself once in a while.”

Root laughed as she propped herself up against the headboard. “That’s a very strange way to say you care about me, Shaw.”

“I do though.” 

Root’s eyebrows knitted together as she watched Shaw in the doorway.

“Care,” She finished. “I do care.” Shaw watched as Root’s initial surprised frown turned into a small. She rolled her eyes, “Don’t make me regret saying that.”

Biting the inside of her cheek to restrain the smile, Root nodded. They both knew she would though, but it didn’t stop Shaw smiling herself.


End file.
